Award-winning singer and songwriter KT Tunstall, who will play March 4-7 at the Egyptian Theatre, almost bought a condo when she last played a multi-night run at the same venue in 2023. “I had such a good time last time I was in town, and it’s quite rare to get these residency shows,” she said. “I absolutely love doing them. I get to play four different shows in the same venue, and it’s a welcoming event, and you feel hugely appreciated when people come to see you four nights in a row.” While Tunstall didn’t sign a condo lease, she found a new way to honor Park City and the Egyptian Theatre. “For the first time ever, we made a special Park City T-shirt,” she said. “It’s of the Egyptian Theatre because I love this gig so much, and it will be part of our merch that people can buy.” Tunstall’s Egyptian Theatre tribute is timely because the venue celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. “That’s so interesting because I started a new project called ‘100 Years, 100 Women’ where I’m recording 100 covers by female artists over the next 10 years,” she said. “It was an idea I had about celebrating the history of female performers from the 1920s all the way to the 2020s. So, I’m picking 10 songs per decade and will start recording hopefully this summer. I think it will be nice to play one of those covers at the Egyptian shows.” Tunstall enjoys performing four nights in one venue like the Egyptian because she gets to experiment with the set lists.  “I like to come up with a sort of basic framework and then take people on a journey where we start with a bang,” she said. “Then I’ll tell some stories and then we’ll go into the woods a little bit, where I like to play some covers. And then there are moments when I can swap out and do different songs. So, everyone will get the songs they are hoping to hear, but each night will get a slightly different flavor full set.” Of course, Tunstall will include songs from her smash debut, “Eye to the Telescope,” which marked its 20th anniversary with special “Stargazer” editions that was released last autumn. Editions include a double album on blue and pink vinyl, a two-CD version and a four-CD version. There is also a combined vinyl and CD version as well. “We’ll have signed copies of those for people to buy,” Tunstall said. “They are beautiful, absolutely gorgeous revamped artwork.” The original “Eye to the Telescopes” sold more than 5 million copies and featured the hits “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree,” “Other Side of the World,” “Suddenly I See,”  “Under the Weather” and “Another Place to Fall.”  The album also features a fan favorite track, “Miniature Disasters,” which wasn’t released as a single. “That was actually the first song we recorded for the record,” Tunstall said. “It was an important one in terms of getting my sound, that rhythm and cool old-school blues drums you hear on ‘Suddenly I See’ and ‘Black Horse and the Cherry Tree.’” Tunstall wrote “Miniature Disasters” from the gut. “I remember thinking about all of these many, little, tiny bad things that happened that day and came together as a big monster,” she said with a laugh. The single “Suddenly I See” made an impact on Tunstall’s life. The song was included on the soundtrack of David Frankel’s 2006 workplace drama-comedy, “Devil Wears Prada,” which starred Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Adrian Grenier, and won that year’s Ivor Novello Best Song award. “It was like being shot out of a cannon because everything changed from there,” she said. “That’s a very prestigious award ceremony, and it’s all about craft and writing.” So, it’s serendipitous that the film’s sequel, “Devil Wears Prada II,” will hit theaters May 1. “I can’t wait to go see that movie,” Tunstall said. “Because it’s the same cast and all of that stuff, it’s re-engaging people with that first movie. I’m sure a lot of people will go back to watch the first movie before seeing the new one.” Speaking of full-circle moments, Tunstall won another Ivor Novello Award in 2024. “I was delighted and surprised when I was awarded the Outstanding Song Collection,” she said. “To come around almost 20 years later to receive an award for all of my work since then, which hasn’t been as commercially bold, was really special. And it felt great to be recognized that I have kept working hard in terms of making meaningful, authentic work.” Tunstall said writing songs is more difficult than it was in 2006. “I will be completely honest about that and say, I’m pretty happy now,” she said with a laugh. “I’m a very at-peace human being, and I wasn’t that way 20 years ago. My insights were pretty turbulent, so it’s definitely a strange boogie getting older and having different relationships with the world and with oneself.” In order to write songs today, Tunstall asks herself a string of questions. “I have to say, ‘What do I want to write about?’ What do I want to say?’ and ‘What do I need to share?’” she said. “When I was younger, I never needed to ask those questions because it was kind of like a form of therapy where I was working through some difficult stuff I was dealing with in my life as a younger person.” These days, Tunstall looks at the songwriting craft as a form of study. “I’m interested in other artists’ work and delving into catalogues of artists I really admire,” she said. “I’m about to embark on a Bonnie Raitt adventure, and that’s almost like going back to school.” Still, Tunstall knows her songwriting comes down to the kind of artist she is. “I think I’ve never really been someone who would paint by numbers, look at the data and try to please all the people all the time,” she said. “That first record was 100% born from authentic things I wanted to say in a style in which I wanted to say them, and I’ve continued to do that in the last 20 years with the following albums. I think you have to make work that’s true for you from the heart and go out and communicate that strongly.” While those albums didn’t reach the same heights as “Eye to the Telescope,” Tunstall says her fans who know the catalogue appreciate the other albums. “As an artist I think it’s important that you’re super proud of everything you put out,” she said. “You should make the best work you can make, and for the fans who just know that first record, there’s a stack of eight other records waiting for them.” Still, Tunstall never thought “Eye to the Telescope” would become such an important record in her career, let alone remain significant two decades after its release.  “You never think about things like that when you release an album, so one of the biggest compliments is the fact that the music keeps communicating with people,” she said. “I feel so grateful, not only that fans still love listening to this record, but that they’ve brought their kids up on it. I now have this amazing pleasure of having a whole new generation of young people, some really young people, who have been brought up on this record. I love that entire families, from grandparents down to the babies, are coming to the show.” KT Tunstall When: 8 p.m., March 4-7 Where: The Egyptian Theatre, 328 Main St. Cost: $45-$70 Phone: 855-745-SHOW Web: parkcityshows.com and kttunstall.com The post KT Tunstall celebrates 20 years of keeping her ‘Eye to the Telescope’ appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less